"Matters of the Heart"

"Let them curse, but bless thou: when they arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice." (Psalms 109:28)

 If you have never done a study on Job, it would do you great service to at least check it out; there are some very important messages buried within that book, some of which can really change your outlook on the things that matter most in this life. And that mysterious person who was speaking in that closing Scripture, he is worth checking out; I still haven't figured out who or what he was. The verse before us today is a lot like that, the Book of Job, and the lessons that are spelled out within it. Yes, Job cursed the day that he was born, but he continued to bless God. In all of his suffering, he did not turn his back on God, because he knew the truth. He might not have known everything, but he knew enough to know that God was not punishing him for anything that he had done. This life can be so brutal and ugly sometimes, it is hard to try and understand why certain things happen. But there is one thing that is for sure, that God's people can rejoice no matter what; we might not feel like rejoicing, but there is always reason there to rejoice, regardless of how we might feel. Do you know why that might be? How is it that we can rejoice in the midst of suffering? Because we have hope! There might not be much on this earth that we can hope for; and if we do hope in the things of this world, we will always be sadly disappointed in the security that they supply, because there really is none. This is the other side of our security that is out of reach, safe and secure in heaven; that is also where our hope is! As long as we are here on this earth, we are never going to have what it is that we hope for, our eternal home in heaven. Just as we cannot reach or destroy our salvation that is safely locked away in heaven, so too, nothing here on this earth can take away the hope that we have in being there. Absolutely nothing! Every trial, every circumstance; no matter the situation, there is nothing here on this entire earth that can touch the hope that is within us. So, rejoice...

""I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn over what is going to happen to me, but the world will rejoice. You will grieve, but your grief will suddenly turn to wonderful joy. It will be like a woman suffering the pains of labor. When her child is born, her anguish gives way to joy because she has brought a new baby into the world. So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again; then you will rejoice, and no one can rob you of that joy."" (John 16:20-22) NLT